Investigation published in Veterinary Microbiology

January 1^st, 2023

Taylorella asinigenitalis is a non-pathogenic bacteria isolated from the genital tract of donkeys but also a cause of metritis and vaginal discharge in mares. It is closely related to Taylorella equigenitalis, the cause of Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM) in horses, and has been present in different countries in Europe since 1995. Up to date, there are no studies on the prevalence of T. asinigenitalis in the equine or asinine populations in Spain; this is the first report of the presence of T. asinigenitalis in donkeys (Equus asinus) from different breeds in three regions of Spain. A total of 106 healthy animals of three different Spanish donkey breeds: Andaluza (26), Majorera (12) and Zamorano-Leonés (68) were sampled between June and July 2017 and a real-time PCR was used to detect T. asinigenitalis in all samples. A total of 39/221 (17,65 %) samples from 22/106 (20,75 %) animals yielded a positive result and were further characterized by MLST; an allelic profile and Sequence Type (ST) could be assigned to 11 of the 39 positive samples, resulting in four novel STs and no clonal complexes within the PubMLST database. There were statistically significant differences in the percentage of positive animals by breed and sex, and also in the variability of STs between farms. Breeding management would have an influence on the percentage of positives in a farm; artificial insemination and separating jacks from jennies should be implemented. Further studies to detect and characterize T. asinigenitalis in donkeys and horses from Spain would be required to obtain a broader epidemiological picture in this country

Dorrego-Rodriguez A., Herranz-Benito C., Perez-Sancho M., Camino E., Gomez-Arrones V., Carrasco JJ., de Gabriel-Perez J., Serres C. and Cruz F..

First report and molecular characterization of cases of natural Taylorella asinigenitalis infection in three donkey breeds in Spain

First report and molecular characterization of cases of natural Taylorella asinigenitalis infection in three donkey breeds in Spain

	Servicio de Vigilancia Sanitaria Equina (SEVISEQ). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM).
	Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM).
	Centro de Selección y Reproducción Animal (CENSYRA_IMIDRA).
	Asociación Nacional de Criadores de Ganado Selecto de Raza Zamorano-Leonesa (ASZAL).
	Departamento de Medicina y Cirugía Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM).